I had some general questions regarding buying a backpack to use during my 3 week backpacking trip through Europe.

To start off, I’m a 6“1 and 220 lbs guy. I can support a large pack for a formidable amount of time.

I’m not a heavy packer, but above average. I have a few questions about size/frame/detach-ability.

First, I will not be checking a bag so I will be using this pack as my carry-on. I know there are certain size restrictions with carry-ons, but I have seen some packs that detach in multiple spots to become smaller packs/ fanny-packs etc.

I assume I will need a bag with a waterproof cover that folds out.

I will be doing an average amount of walking with this pack. It is important to be that the bag splits to other sizes.

Anyone have any experience with a bag like this? Any recommendations? Comments? Questions? Feel free to link/ask/comment how ever you want. I need all the help I can get.

Those packs both exceed carry on limits quite a bit. The only way you’d be carrying on with either of those packs is if you didn’t pack much inside and could collapse it down (or if the airline was really lax about enforcing policy). The maximum carry on size for most airlines works out to a pack that’s about 40-45 liters. I’ve seen people carry on 50-55 liter packs, but had the airline been checking carefully they could have made the passengers check the packs.

That said, in general those packs would work fine. Many of us prefer packs designed specifically for travel as those are technically outdoors packs. The differences tend to be that travel packs allow you to load them like a suitcase instead of having to pack everything from the top, and travel that packs usually have features such as detachable daypacks and covers to protect straps when they’re checked on flights. Here’s a travelpack that is affordable and gets good reviews overall but does not sound like it’s durable over the long-haul:http://www.ebags.com…

This is a little more expensive, but looks like it’s designed better, I’d trust REI gear, and you could go try it on at an REI store if you’re near one:http://www.rei.com/p…

Being 6’1” it might be more important for you than someone who’s 5’8” to try packs on at a store to ensure a good fit.

The High Sierra Compass looks great. I do see some durability issues, but once my trip is over, I can really care less because it will become a duffel bag more-or-less. It does have a lifetime guarantee in which they will send a new bag in return for the old one so thats cool.

Yea I guess I was in totally the wrong category but I kind of knew what I was going for. The day bag that the Compass has is exactly what I am looking for. Also it fits most airline carry-on specs.